About Stonetrail

March 7th 2010

March has brought with it a considerable change in the weather and it feels like spring is finally on its way. There are baby lambs in the feilds and the birds are singing, and today we have clear blue skies. All our guests have been out riding and walking and cycling this weekend and enjoying the "warmer" weather ( well anything above freezing is tropical after the winter we have just had ! )

Feb 2010

Stonetrail is featured in this months Cumbria Life as part of a special article about the Eden Valley. Alison also has an article in this months Horse & Rider magazine entitled "Top Tips for Horsey Holidays". You can read both articles on our press page by clicking here.

Jan 1st 2010 - Happy New Year

My goodness, what has happened to the weather ! We thought that last winter was cold but this winter really is taking us by suprise. The snow has been with us continually since Dec 17th and temperatures appear to getting lower by the day. Our Christmas and New Year guests have had a great time in what we all think has been perfect Christmas weather - There has been daily sledging, snow boarding and even a bit of ski-ing. The Cumbrian landscape lends itself perfectly to snow and with the cloudless days we have been having it's like the Alps ( but without those airports ! )

The horses are coping very well and having a well earned rest from riding. We have them next to the farmhouse where we can keep a constant eye on them and they are getting use to the general routine of winter feeding by humans rather than their usual grazing habits. The cold temperatures are ensuring the water toughs freeze over in only a couple of hours so it is a continual job checking and filling troughs ( has to be done by a hose pipe from the house as all external pipes are frozen ! )

The weather has given us some fantastic days for walking and photography and for anyone who fancies a bit of winter wonderland this would be a great time to visit.

Dec 09

After several months of hard work filling in forms and presenting our business plans we have been informed that our application for grant funding to improve our riding facilities have been succesfull. This includes improvements to our stable yard and construction of a riding menage which will help to attract more riding holiday customers as well as visitors who wish to holiday with their own horse, particuarly horse and riders using the Pennine Bridleway.

Nov 09

David and Alison were invited by Natural England to give a presentation at a business development workshop to encourage new businesses to create visitor accommodation and services along the Pennine Bridleway. The most northerly section of the Pennine Bridleway, Englands latest long distance trail, is due to open officially in Spring 2011. This was a good opportunity for us to explain more about ouselves and how the Pennine Bridleway is helping to shape our business.

July 09

This month we began our Trail Ride adventures along the Pennine Bridleway, which is a new development to our riding business. This involves us heading out along the bridleway in a southerly direction and staying overnight in Garsdale and returning home the next day. We plan to run this event 8 times this summer. At present, we are unable to follow the bridleway beyond Garsdale Head because a bridge is required but this should be in place by 2010.

May 09

We have a new horse called Harry who is a 15h cob gelding. Harry is from Cumbria and has been used for pleasure hacks and endurance rides so he should feel quite at home with us.

April 09

Stoneview, our largest property was completed and opened to a full house at Easter. This accommodates up to 10 guests and together with our other 2 properties opens up opportunities for us to market ourselves as a venue for groups of up to 16. ( By September, Stoneview had played host ( on separate weekends ! ) to a 30th, 40th, 50th, 60th, & 70th birthday celebrations as well as a group of very finely dressed hens and some exceptionally well behaved stags ).

March 09

Facilities for visitors wishing to bring their horse on holiday have opened and this month we have welcomed 6 horses to stay which has been a gentle but positive start to this aspect of our business. It has been interesting listening to their experiences on their routes as everyone has different map reading skills. We intend to use feedback to help us continually improve the maps and facilities we provide.

Nov 08

Cumbria Life ran a very positive full page article about Stonetrail and our plans for the business. We hope this will help to raise the awareness of our trail riding facilities for local riders as well as encouraging new visitors to the area.

Aug 08

The beginnings of our sheep flock arrived in the form of 4 Ryeland lambs. This is one of Englands oldest breeds. They are very friendly and always enjoy visits from our guests.

July 08

Our first two self catering properties, Stoneyard and Stoneheight have finally opened. Within days of completion ( and we must admit not everything was quite ready ! ) we received a visit from the Guardian and were fortunate to have a half page feature, which is due to appear in the Autumn. This was a great suprise and a huge help for our marketing. Big thankyou to Cumbria Tourism for organising this and what is great support for new businesses in Cumbria.

May 08

Our riding and bike hire centre opened and began offering rides lasting from an hour to a full day. Route and maps are being provided for guests to guide themselves round the cycling and walking routes.

April 08

Phase 2 begins - conversion of barns to form 2 self catering properties.

June 07

An additional 28 acres of adjoining land ( formally belonging to Street Farm ) was purchased. This enables direct access onto the limestone pavement above the farm.

March 07

Phase 1 completed and David and Alison move into the main farmhouse with Jack and Charlie, their sons.

Dec 04

Street Farm was purchased by David and Alison Roper. David and Alison were living in Lymm in Cheshire and working full time in Manchester, David as a Chartered Surveyor with Knight Frank and Alison as a Human Resources Manager at Manchester Airport. David and Alison also owned a holiday home close by to Street Farm and had spent several years exploring the local tracks and trails on the local fells. Immediate work began to draw up development & construction plans for the creation of a holiday centre for walkers, cyclists and horse and riders.

The works were planned as 4 key phases:

1 - Re-construction of main farmhouse

2 - Conversion of barns for first 2 self catering properties

3 - Conversion of barns for a third self catering property

4 - Conversion of barns for a fourth self catering property & ancillery facilites for onsite activities

Stonetrail Holidays

About Stonetrail